Panel Backs Bill To Seize Cars Used In Soliciting Prostitutes

TALLAHASSEE -- Pay someone for sex, and it could cost you thousands of dollars.

That`s the threat of a bill (SB 1250) that would let the state confiscate a vehicle used by someone soliciting a prostitute.

``I`m not trying to load up prisons,`` said its sponsor, Sen. Mark Foley, R- West Palm Beach. ``I`m trying to show the john that his actions could result in the loss of his property.``

The bill won unanimous approval on Monday in the Senate Criminal Justice Committee.

It would take away the vehicle of someone who repeatedly uses his car to violate prostitution laws. That could be a pimp as well as a john. Currently, for someone who buys sex, the charge is a misdemeanor and the penalty usually a fine of $500 or less.

The proposal is the outgrowth of a crusade by West Palm Beach Mayor Nancy Graham, who has been trying to crack down on prostitutes and their customers. So far, she has done that with regular sting operations in the city plus the use of newspaper ads to publicize the names of johns who are caught.

``I`m encouraged,`` said Graham, after testifying before the committee. ``Part of the problem is just educating (legislators) on the situation as it really exists. I think they`re slightly out of touch. They think prostitution is not a big deal because it`s been around forever.``

In Portland, Ore., where a similar law was enacted in 1989, 605 cars have been seized from people who were caught twice trying to buy sex. The city has reported a decline of prostitution.

Still, the Florida proposal is probably doomed for this session.

That`s because House Criminal Justice Committee Chairman Rep. Elvin Martinez, D-Tampa, is so hostile to the idea that he refused to give it a hearing.

``I don`t approve of forfeiture, period,`` Martinez said on Monday. ``I think abuses (of the forfeiture) law already have been so pronounced, that we need to get what we have straightened out. And forfeiture for a misdemeanor, that`s something which we don`t allow. I don`t believe it`s realistic.``

Foley, though, says he will not allow ``the premature demise`` of his bill. He says he will lobby Martinez. Or he will try to amend the idea onto a ``must-pass`` bill.

Graham, meanwhile, says she must keep explaining why this issue matters. She says prostitution is destroying neighborhoods, helping promote use of illegal drugs and spreading deadly diseases such as AIDS.

``This is nothing to do with morality,`` she said. ``But it is the No. 1 complaint we receive from our citizens. It is a huge problem.``